Eskom grid operator takes charge of green power

Eskom’s grid operator Tshifhiwa Magoro will head the independent power producers’ (IPP) office, which is responsible for rolling out the government’s renewable energy IPP programme.

Magoro is the GM of the Eskom system operator and Eskom telecommunications and is responsible for ensuring the integrity of SA’s electricity grid. This includes managing realtime electricity supply and balancing demand.

ELECTRICITY TARIFF

As of May 1, he will head the office that oversees the execution of the green-power programme, which has attracted R209bn in investment into more than 112 green-power projects.

The programme has at times been a bone of contention for Eskom, which is mandated to buy the power from these projects. Although it passes on the expense to consumers through the electricity tariff, the cashstrapped utility has previously complained about having to bear the expense upfront.

At one point Eskom caused delays in rolling out projects when it refused to sign power purchase agreements.

The office’s mandate, which expired at the end of March this year, has been extended to March 2023, by which time it is expected to be institutionalised, the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) confirmed. The IPP office was established in 2010 through a memorandum of agreement between the department of energy, the Treasury and the DBSA.

Magoro replaces Sandra Coetzee, who has held the acting position since July 2019 when the office’s long-serving former

CEO, Karen Breytenbach, was removed from the post.

An electrical engineer by profession, Magoro has more than 20 years’ technical, managerial and leadership experience in the electricity supply industry. He has held technical positions in planning, operations, project management, energy markets, regulation, compliance management, grid codes, benchmarking activities, as well as grid integration of different generation.

THE PROGRAMME HAS AT TIMES BEEN A BONE OF CONTENTION FOR ESKOM, WHICH IS MANDATED TO BUY THE POWER

RECRUITMENT

After the implementation of the country’s renewable energy IPP programme, he led the process that saw the development and enforcement of the first renewable grid code in SA.

The appointment follows a “rigorous recruitment process and on the recommendation of an interview panel, which consisted of representatives from the department of mineral resources & energy, the National Treasury’s government technical advisory committee, and the DBSA”, the bank said.